New restaurants coming soon to northeast Fresno shopping center

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- There are some new dining options coming to northeast Fresno, and people will soon be able to enjoy cafe-style food and trendy new poke here in the Valley.

Pastries, pancakes and paninis are just some of the items you'll soon be able to enjoy at one of Fresno's newest eateries - Corner Bakery Cafe.

"We're considered a fast-casual restaurant," manager Randy Ivie explained. "Not quite fast food, but we're not quite full service. But I like to say it like this, We're not fast food or not, but we do good food, fast.'"

Corner Bakery is a new cafe that will offer breakfast, lunch and dinner. On Friday, employees got a chance to prepare and try out the menu in anticipation of opening day on Monday at 6 a.m. The store is offering free coffee for a year for the first 100 people. It's located at the corner of Friant and Fresno Avenues, the restaurant is the newest place to open at the Park Crossing Shopping Center.

"Northeast Fresno is the happening place," Ivie said. "It's the growing place of Fresno and we wanted to be smack dab in the middle of it."

The restaurant hopes to draw in neighbors and those traveling to Yosemite. The Corner Bakery Cafe is originally from Chicago but has three locations in the Valley. This is the first in Fresno. And more eateries are opening up on the eastern side of Park Crossing Shopping Center.

Construction is underway at Butterfish California Poke. Co-owner Rema Koligian is excited about the new fresh, fast-casual restaurant.

"We're doing California poke or what we call California poke," Koligian said. "It's a twist on the California poke. So, we're going to offer a lot more options a lot more customizable. Of course, we will have the traditional raw fish, but we're also going to offer some seafood and some non-fish options."

Koligian said they wanted to bring more fresh and healthy options to Fresno. The restaurant will also offer an app and front row parking to pick up your food.

"Fast convenient, especially for moms who don't have a lot of time and don't want to lug two kids out of the car," Koligian said. "It's easy. We will have parking stalls right in front."

The restaurant is looking to hire about 30-plus people. Butterfish California Poke is expected in early January. Also in the shopping center, Figaro's Mexican Grill is open and Tofas Mediterranean will also take up residence. Other dining options and boutiques like SheShe are also a part of Park Crossing.

Trader Joe's is also expected to relocate to the shopping center in the future, drawing even more people to the growing center.